Murder mysteries have long been a part of storytelling and a part of film; as long as there have been films, there have been murder mysteries. It excites audiences to be able to crack the code with, and sometimes even before, the characters in the story. It allows viewers to think and put themselves in the place of the characters, who tend to grow and develop (or are revealed) alongside the story of a great murder mystery that not only surprises them but also audiences.
Update October 1, 2023: With the recent release of A Haunting in Venice, this article has been updated with even more great murder mysteries, which upended expectations.
However, murder mysteries can get a bit repetitive and predictable. This has caused viewers to veer away from the genre and stop seeking out murder mysteries in general, with all their requisite twists, red herrings, and last-minute reveals. Lurking in the dust of bad murder mysteries, however, there remain certain great ones that can have hooked viewers with their mysteries and amazing characters, reinventing the ole cliché-ridden plots of tired mysteries. Actor-director Kenneth Branagh revived the famed Inspector Poirot character in three films, including 2023’s A Haunting in Venice and the surprisingly massive success of murder mystery Knives Out and led to a sequel in 2022. With this new emphasis on classic mysteries, let’s take a look at some of the best of the genre.
10 See How They Run (2022)
Coming out just a few years after Knives Out and sharing that film’s mix of homage and parody, 2022’s See How They Run could be dismissed as just a British version of Rian Johnson’s surprise hit. However, Tom George’s mystery comedy has more than enough going for it to stand on its own two feet. Set in London in 1953, the story revolves around the murder of a sleazy theater producer (played by Adrien Brody) following the 100th performance of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap. It falls to alcoholic detective Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell), and his inexperienced yet eager-to-learn sidekick, Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan), to catch the killer.
Sharply written and expertly directed, See How They Run combines a classic Christie-style caper with the kind of meta-humor audiences have become accustomed to, thanks to the likes of blockbuster movies like Deadpool and TV shows such as Community and Rick and Morty. Like all good parodies, it’s done out of love for the thing it’s spoofing.
9 Clue (1985)
Speaking of mystery comedies made with love, the 1985 cult classic Clue could be seen as a forerunner in this field. While it was by no means the first film to bring humor to the mystery genre (for starters, Robert Moore’s Death By Murder came out a whole nine years before), it’s certainly one of the most well-known. With an ensemble cast that includes Tm Curry, Christoper Lloyd, Eileen Brennan, and Madeline Kahn, the Clue is a film adaptation of the popular board game of the same name. The plot sees six guests (Mrs. Peacock, Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Professor Plum, Miss Scarlet, and Colonel Mustard) arrive at a creepy mansion for dinner, only to find themselves as suspects when their host is murdered.
What makes the film unique is the fact that it has three separate endings, each revealing a different murderer. This makes it more like the game, in which there is an almost infinite number of outcomes. With its high gag count, cast of eccentric characters, and stately home setting, it’s not a huge leap in logic to assume that Clue was a big inspiration for Rian Johnson when he was making Knives Out. While it didn’t reinvent the wheel, Clue did do something completely fresh with the worn-out mystery genre and is still one of the few goods films based on a board game.
8 A Simple Favor (2018)
A Simple Favor is a dark comedy take on the murder mystery/missing persons case that audiences had recently seen in Gone Girl. The movie follows mother Stephanie Smothers (Anna Kendrick), who befriends a mysterious cool mom named Emily Nelson (Blake Lively). When Emily goes missing, Stephanie tries to solve the case that brings her down a massive conspiracy and also ends up sort of taking over Emily’s life. The question is, was there even a murder, or is there something going on beneath the surface? A Simple Favor was a dramatic departure for comedic director Paul Feig, but also just what audiences needed at the time.
7 Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Murder on the Orient Express may be a remake of a movie based on a 1934 novel by Agatha Christie, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. In theory, this film perpetuates the idea that Hollywood has no original ideas, but on another level, it is able to bring a classic story to a whole new generation. With murder in the title, it is not hard to assume that Murder on the Orient Express is a murder mystery, and by now, most people are probably familiar with its plot.
Yet the film is able to create a vast, star-studded cast of characters who all appear to the audience as innocent but to Detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) as guilty. This allows the audience the space to question their own views of the characters while still trying to solve the murder that has occurred. With an infamous ending some people feel to be a cop-out, this is not the perfect murder mystery (as it is hard to be), but Branagh’s suave, beautifully directed, A-list remake means Murder on the Orient Express is a great mystery for the whole family to solve together.
6 A Haunting in Venice (2023)
If Branagh reinvented the mystery genre with Murder on the Orient Express, he did it for a second time with 2023’s A Haunting in Venice. The third film in the actor/director’s series of Agatha Christie adaptations it marks a dramatic departure in tone and style from the two films that preceded it. While Murder on the Orient Express and 2022’s Death on the Nile were filled with all the glamour, sophistication, campiness, and melodrama one might expect from a Christie adaptation, A Haunting in Venice eschews much of this in favor of a more horror-enduced tale.
Based on one of Christie’s lesser-known works, 1969’s Hallowe’en Party, the film sees a now-retired Hercule Poirot (once again played by Branagh) reluctantly take part in a séance that ends in murder. The infamous Belgian detective must spring back into action and solve the murder before the killer strikes again. With every element of the production design leaning into the source material’s spooky/supernatural tone, Branagh and his team have crafted a horror film that happens to contain a murder mystery rather than a murder mystery with splashes of horror.
It’s so effective that, from seeing the film’s promotional material alone, you’d be forgiven for thinking A Haunting in Venice is a stand-alone horror movie, rather than the third film in a series based on the works of the world’s most famous mystery writer. If Branagh can keep finding new ways to tell Christie’s stories, there’s no reason these films can’t keep going and going.
5 The Nice Guys (2016)
The Nice Guys is not only one of the most underrated films of the twenty-first century, but it’s also one of the most original entries in the crime genre. Directed by Shane Black, the film covers a number of different genres. It’s, all at once, a neo-noir film with heavy action that pays homage to buddy comedies of the seventies, but it somehow manages to pull it off. Set in 1977 Los Angeles, the plot revolves around the disappearance of a teenage girl and the mismatched pair of private eyes (played by Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe) who make it their mission to find her. Along the way, they stumble across several dead bodies and a conspiracy surrounding the suppression of catalytic converters.
There are no other films like The Nice Guys. With its zany humor, tongue-in-cheek script, callbacks to buddy comedies of days gone by, and engaging central mystery, it’s a truly unique watch and one that definitely deserves a sequel (or two). It may not be your typical murder mystery but, in this case, that’s certainly not a bad thing.
4 Zodiac (2007)
Acclaimed director David Fincher is no stranger to a mystery. Seven, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and Gone Girl all have a mystery as part of their central story. As does 2007’s Zodiac. Telling the real-life story of the manhunt for the serial murderer known as the Zodiac Killer, the film follows a cartoonist turned amateur sleuth (Jake Gyllenhaal) who becomes obsessed with working out the identity of the killer, who taunts San Francisco police officers with letters and bloodstained clothing belonging to the victims. Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. also star as a San Francisco Police inspector and a crime reporter, respectively.
An example of a neo-noir film, Zodiac garnered critical acclaim upon its release in theaters, with praise being directed at its script, direction, and the performances of the cast. Indeed, the film has all the director’s best trademarks; it’s violent, brutal, full of nuance, and will keep you on the edge of your seat. It’s a murder mystery film that’s not for the faint-hearted, but if you don’t mind losing a night of sleep or two after watching it, it’s worth.
3 Fargo (1996)
Fargo, the murder mystery that really catapulted the Coen brothers (Ethan Coen and Joel Coen), into fame and a long-standing film career, may reveal its mystery to the audience, but watching its fantastic protagonist figure it all out is just as good. Fargo, set in rural Minnesota, is a forever watchable murder mystery. While the film was released 26 years ago, the critically acclaimed FX series means that people are still discovering this great watch today. The dark comedy that surrounds the story is not only hilarious but a great pairing with the morbid storyline; dark comedy is a hard thing to do, but the Coen brothers are masters of using it to their favor.
Frances McDormand is fabulous in this film, fully bringing the audience into the world she inhabits and along for her journey, one pregnant with nihilistic crime and stunning darkness. She’s also pregnant with a baby, making her polite, pregnant, Midwestern cop one of the most delightful protagonists in mystery history. The killers and kidnappers, also, are not your usual villains. A not-quite old-school murder mystery, Fargo has stood the test of time, and most likely will continue to do so.
2 Knives Out (2019)
Rian Johnson’s Knives Out was a bit outside the Star Wars director’s recent catalog of work, though it circles all the way back to his first film, the mystery Brick. However, with this film, he was able to successfully tackle the overly common “whodunit” trope and create an entirely new way for those films to be written and made. The murder mystery/whodunit genre is as old as film itself but has only recently gone through a Renaissance of sorts. For many film fans, Knives Out was and is the poster child for this Renaissance. This is because of the way Johnson handled the story and allowed it to grow and change, blossoming his characters along the way (including the hilariously odd Southern detective played by a surprising Daniel Craig in a role more brilliant than Bond).
The way Knives Out creates characters who build on each other in mysterious, sometimes hilarious ways keeps audiences guessing until the final second. Mystery movies have long been very predictable, and easy for viewers to guess the plot twist. However, by creating deep and interesting characters and using revelatory flashbacks, Johnson is able to confuse viewers, keep them invested in the story, and still surprise them with the plot twist. The A.V. Club sums it up well by saying it “at once revives and daringly subverts the old-school whodunit,” accurately indicating how Knives Out truly is one of the few perfect modern mysteries.
1 Se7en (1995)
Seven (stylized as Se7en) is one of the most famous movies about a serial killer (probably alongside David Fincher’s other film, Zodiac) but it’s more of a multi-murder mystery. While most murder mysteries follow a single murder that affects all the characters, Se7en follows a single killer who murders multiple people, and detectives must find out why. Not only do the detectives (Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman) not know who the murderer is, they also don’t know why she or he is committing these murders. Pitt and Freeman bring the viewers along on their search, even when it hits a bit close to home.
This is what makes Se7en a perfect multi-murder mystery; the viewers are learning along with the characters. The characters not only exist within compelling narratives of their own personal lives, but strive to put themselves in the shoes and mind of the murderer as well, allowing the viewer to understand everyone’s perspective in this haunting cat-and-mouse chase. The film re-invented the tried-and-true detective story, updating classic rainy film noir to a modern, violent setting; it introduced a level of grim horror that hadn’t been seen in mainstream mysteries at the time. If you have the stomach for it, Se7enhas some great murder and some great mystery.
